Oren--I think someone working in NYC theatre/film who is not aware of who GA is is hardly a cogent source. Whether he was right or wrong to do what he did isn't the point. Lisa's response is disrespectful and rather poorly written, it seems to me.

So it sounds like in HIS version, Alessandrini left out the part where his note to Carol got a response of "negative." He plowed his way in anyway. And he disrupted the whole screening with his behavior! Gross!

full disclosure: i work with the festival. i have the upmost respect for the organizers who do a good job despite running on very little sleep (how NYC is that!) i agree it could be better organized but this night, regarding this problem, it's very simple. i don't care who he was/is, he was NOT on any guest list. we did our job and it was crowded and hectic. we went above and beyond to let him write the note and when Carol herself said they didn't want him there, what else could we do? simply, he was NOT invited, moreover, they were NOT expecting him and his guest so there were NO seats reserved, so duh, we escorted him out. yes, i heard him offer to buy a ticket, but it was SOLD OUT. you'd THINK a bigwig Bway winnner (i'm rolling my eyes, folks, i mean, i've never heard of him) would KNOW what "sold out" means, as in THERE ARE NO FREAKING SEATS. guess he wanted to sit on carol's lap? hello, mister entitled, sorry but please leave. to be fair, he was very calm and not irate. he wasn't causing a scene or anything to make security act all hyped up, but it IS carol channing and they said they knew who he was but he was not anyone special...sorry, but that's what we got from her and her team. he tried to play like he's "someone" when in fact, sorry, he wasn't anyone to us. he was NOT on any guest list.

sadly his ego got in the way of his logic because while there was a rush line, i believe everyone got in, SO if he'd just acted like a rational human being instead of an egomaniac, he could have stood in the rush line and paid for a ticket like everyone else, you know, like REAL celebs that were there (i won't name them here, but i could)...he clearly thought he was SOMEONE when he isn't. BOOM. therein lies the rub.

maybe he couldn't afford the $16 ticket for him & his friend. now THERE is your story, Musto....and btw i love your column. i just think you're making a story outta nothing here. the story is why a Bway SUPPOSED talented man would try to crash a screening....is Bway that cheap now? again, there's another column perhaps.

The Internet is unfortunately a haven for those who would ANONYMOUSLY perpetuate the character assassination of an innocent person based on the dishonest statements of someone like "Lisa" above. If you can't see the danger in this, I'm sure it's beyond my powers to explain it to you. At any rate, I have been in communication with the Tribeca Film Festival, and while they say it is simply not their policy to make any official statement or comment via blogs (which is understandable), they have profusely apologized to Mr. Alessandrini for the appalling treatment he received at the screening. They also tell me that this Lisa person was a volunteer who will never again be working for the festival. That is all.

Lisa, if you've never heard of Gerard Alessandrini then I've guessing you're not much interested in New York theatre. Have you never heard of Forbidden Broadway? Whatever happened that night, he actually is a REAL celeb.

To all who read this blog, please be aware that "Lisa" is lying about several details of the story, including her statement that there were no more tickets available to the screening. I am currently in communication with Tribeca about this incident in the hope that she will be held accountable for her actions that evening, as well as for blogging (and lying) about what happened.

To "Savannah Montgomery": Your "inner Judge Judy" shouldn't speculate about things like this without knowing all of the facts. Mr. Alessandrini did go through the correct channels by phone and email earlier that day. Please stay tuned for details about the Tribeca Film Festival response to this extremely unfortunate situation.

I hard the whole story just after it happened, and it sounds like a total, weird mess. I was (slightly) involved in trying to get Gerard into the screening. On Monday, I'll be making calls to try to identify the woman who called security and see if we can get her confined to a mental institution, where she belongs.

But Lisa is the one who gave her real name. "Westside" never did. Why is "Westsider" complaining bout anonymity when Lisa said exactly who she was in the whole process, not some second hand pseudo entitled person.